MOSCOW (AFP) -- Final checks have begun on the Canadian Anik F3 telecommunication satellite due to be launched into space by a Russian rocket next month, the rocket's makers said on Monday.

The satellite, which weighs 4,600 kilograms (10,140 pounds), will supply telephone and Internet services and transmit television and radio signals across Canada and the United States.

It arrived at the Baikonur launch site in Kazakhstan on Saturday where it will undergo technical checks by experts from EADS Astrium, a subsidiary of European aerospace group EADS, which built it.

The Proton M rocket, made by the Khrunichev Space and Production Center, has been there since the beginning of March and is going through similar tests, the Russian group said.

EADS built the satellite, which has a 15-year lifespan, for Telesat Canada, a pioneer in the field.

Following a planned launch on April 10, the satellite will be placed on a geostationary orbit at 118.7 degrees west.